There is something almost sacred about rain. How it relieves the ground around us and makes a noise that gives us a sigh. How it seems to welcome your day with a quiet spirit.
This morning was the first morning in our new apartment since moving cross country. It was exceptionally strange to open my eyes and find a place that was barely familiar to me, and yet I called home. Home looks more snowy and midwestern, but as my sleepy eyes took in the Florida, usually sunshine-y world around me, I heard the trickle of rain outside. It was odd to feel at home and more relatable to the rain than to my own room, but it reminded me that change brings about different needs and comforts.
As the day went on, it began to get more and more difficult to accept all of the change and to stay grounded, and so this list emerged. I needed some help, and maybe you do too. Here are 7 ways to stay grounded during times of transition.
1. Allow Yourself The Privilege Of Sighing.
https://unsplash.com/search/photos/sigh
This means to stop and breathe and to mindfully quiet your questions, lists, and emotions that are all swirling around in your head in all of the newness. Sighing is a good way to express the inward emotions you may be feeling and can help do a reset for your breath. Body, mind, and soul adjustment can be messy and sometimes confusing as we try to figure out where our hearts and minds are, so be honest with yourself if it's hard, let out a sigh, and take time to breathe a little bigger.
2. Talk To Your People.
https://www.everypixel.com/search?q=friends&stocks_type=free&image_id=15708190397988285011
It is so important to verbalize and put words to what you are feeling and experiencing. Take intentional time to call family or your friends, and then be intentional about sharing how your transition is going- the hard things, the surprises, or the easy. Sharing can help you to realize fully what you are feeling help you reconcile the situation before you. Allow yourself to breathe and feel the sadness, the grief, or the exhaustion from all of the stress and toil that change can have with someone else.
3. Time Outside.
https://kaboompics.com/photo/1956/walk-by-a-lake
Being outside is so good for your soul. Face toward the sun, walk through the snow, look at the trees, embrace the wind, whatever it looks like, enjoy it. And take time to notice it. The bigness of the world can help put our own turmoil, to-do list, and emotions into perspective, and remind us that there is more to life than our small, detailed lives. Find encouragement in the freshness of the soil, the rain, and the sun.
4. Create Goals.
https://barnimages.com/old-football-goals/
Transition can feel unsettling like you have pieces of your life in puzzle form scattered on the table that is your life. Creating goals can help take those pieces of your life and put them together in your mind. It can also be a bit of a reset, and a great time to implement changes and new patterns that are going to nurture your health and balance throughout this season and beyond.
5. Find Something Familiar.
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One of the hardest parts for me in transition is dealing with all of the things that feel so foreign. I've found that if I can eat, do, or experience something that is familiar in the midst of all of the new, it helps me to feel a little more like myself and a little more safe as I channel the unexpected.
6. Do The Hard Things.
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Discipline can be one of the first things that goes out the window when you're in the middle of transition, but usually those are the most needed things in our lives. Whether it is the discipline of praying, working out, or eating healthy, take the time necessary to do them. Even if it's not as long, or as strenuous, or as intense as you usually practice them, be intentional about exercising for just 10 minutes, or choosing a grapes instead of chips, or taking time to read one Psalm to help nurture your body and soul.
7. Find Rest In Jesus.
Photo by Aaron Burden on Unsplash
I can do all of the things to help make a transition easier, but ultimately the only sure thing is Jesus. And even if I eat all the spinach, and workout every morning, and crush my goals, and process my life perfectly with those who love me, I can still be left exhausted, empty, and lonely.
"Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light." Matthew11:28-30
I hope this can help you find peace in the midst of chaos, good vibes in the unsure, and hope when you can't see the end of things.
Happy transitioning, friends.
